Joseph O'Gorman (24 May 1863–1 August 1937) was an Irish-born comedian. He formed a popular and innovative

double act A double act (also known as a comedy duo) is a form of comedy originating in the British music hall tradition, and American vaudeville, in which two comedians perform together as a single act. Pairings are typically long-term, in some cases f ...

in British

music hall Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was popular from the early Victorian era, beginning around 1850. It faded away after 1918 as the halls rebranded their entertainment as variety. Perceptions of a distinction in Bri ...

s with Joe Tennyson, Tennyson and O'Gorman, in the 1880s and 1890s, before becoming a solo performer. He was also an organiser of theatrical artistes, and was the father of Joe and Dave O'Gorman, "The O'Gorman Brothers".

Life and career

He was born in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

, developed skills as a dancer and singer, and came to England in 1879. He formed a duo with Horace Wheatley, "Joe O'Gorman", ''Music Hall Guild''
Retrieved 1 February 2021 and then, from 1881, with Joseph Tennyson (born in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

, 12 July 1861–5 September 1926). As Tennyson and O'Gorman, they became one of the leading

acts in Britain, developing the idea of cross-talking. Earlier minstrel acts had used the idea of "Mr Interlocutor" bantering with the other performers, but Tennyson and O'Gorman had both performers at centre stage, Tennyson as the comic and O'Gorman as the foil. They wore

top hat A top hat (also called a high hat, a cylinder hat, or, informally, a topper) is a tall, flat-crowned hat for men traditionally associated with formal wear in Western dress codes, meaning white tie, morning dress, or frock coat. Traditionally m ...

s and

frock coat A frock coat is a formal men's coat characterised by a knee-length skirt cut all around the base just above the knee, popular during the Victorian and Edwardian periods (1830s–1910s). It is a fitted, long-sleeved coat with a centre vent at th ...

s and were often billed as "The Two Irish Gentlemen", countering the racist idea that the Irish were all roughly-dressed and ignorant. As well as performing comic sketches, they sang and danced as a duo, and were also known as "The

Patter Patter is a prepared and practiced speech that is designed to produce a desired response from its audience. Examples of occupations with a patter might include the auctioneer, salesperson, dance caller, magician, or comedian. The term may have ...

Propagators". Their most successful song, "The Wild Man of Poplar (A Very Pop'lar Ditty)", was a

cumulative tale In a cumulative tale, sometimes also called a chain tale, action or dialogue repeats and builds up in some way as the tale progresses. With only the sparest of plots, these tales often depend upon repetition and rhythm for their effect, and can r ...

starting with "The Wild Man of Poplar has just come to town" and continuing through ten permutations ("the wife of the Wild Man.....", "the child of the wife of the Wild Man...", etc.). Tennyson and O'Gorman peaked in popularity in the early 1890s.Raymond Mander and Joe Mitchenson, ''British Music Hall: A story in pictures'', Studio Vista, 1965, p.112 They toured extensively, including several visits to the United States, Canada and Australia, before ending their partnership in 1901. Tennyson later performed in a double act with William Wallis, and from 1915 worked as a solo act."Death of Joe Tennyson", ''The Stage'', 9 September 1926 O'Gorman became a solo performer, and was also actively involved in the organisation of music hall performers. He was a founder member of the charitable organization, the

Grand Order of Water Rats The Grand Order of Water Rats is a British entertainment industry fraternity and charitable organisation based in London. Founded in 1889 by the music hall comedians Joe Elvin and Jack Lotto, the order is known for its high-profile membership a ...

. He was elected King Rat in both 1898 and 1901, and was later Chief Booker of the Water Rats. With the growth of the music hall and theatre circuit in Britain, and the need to protect performers against undue exploitation by theatre agents and owners, O'Gorman was involved, with

Wal Pink Walter Augustus Pink (10 May 1862—27 October 1922) was an English music hall performer, writer and theatre producer. Wal Pink was born in Paddington, London, and started his career as a singer in smoking concerts, before appearing on the mus ...

and others, in establishing the

Variety Artistes' Federation The Variety Artistes' Federation (VAF) was a trade union representing variety performers in the United Kingdom. History The union was founded on 18 February 1906, after discussions between the show business social club and charity the Grand Orde ...

, becoming the first chairman of the

trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...

. He led the performers in the

Music Hall Strike of 1907 The Music Hall Strike of 1907 was a theatrical dispute which took place between music hall employees, stage artistes and London theatre proprietors. The catalyst for the strikes were the employees' lack of pay, the scrapping of perks, and an inc ...

, which resulted in important legal victories, but this in turn led to him finding work hard to get as agents and theatre owners turned against him. The O'Gorman Brothers, ''ogormanbros.co.uk''
Retrieved 1 February 2021 O'Gorman was also involved, with

Joe Elvin Joe or JOE may refer to: Arts Film and television * ''Joe'' (1970 film), starring Peter Boyle * ''Joe'' (2013 film), starring Nicolas Cage * ''Joe'' (TV series), a British TV series airing from 1966 to 1971 * ''Joe'', a 2002 Canadian animated ...

, in setting up

Brinsworth House Brinsworth House is a residential and nursing retirement home for theatre and entertainment professionals in Staines Road, Twickenham, west London, England. The house is owned and run by the Royal Variety Charity and has 36 bedrooms, six living ...

Twickenham Twickenham is a suburban district in London, England. It is situated on the River Thames southwest of Charing Cross. Historically part of Middlesex, it has formed part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames since 1965, and the boroug ...

, a

care home A nursing home is a facility for the residential care of elderly or disabled people. Nursing homes may also be referred to as skilled nursing facility (SNF) or long-term care facilities. Often, these terms have slightly different meanings to in ...

for retired entertainers which opened in 1911. In 1914, he teamed up again with Wal Pink and

Harry Tate Ronald Macdonald Hutchison (4 July 1872 – 14 February 1940), professionally known as Harry Tate, was an English comedian, who performed in the music halls, in variety shows, and in films. Career Born in Lambeth, the son of a Scottish tea m ...

to form TOP Productions. Their first

revue A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own duri ...

, ''Irish and Proud of it'', was based around O'Gorman's performances as a comedian, dancer and singer. The show was a success, and was followed by others with a similar approach, ''As Irish as Ever'' and ''Shamrock Time''. O'Gorman later retired as a performer, but made a comeback in 1933 with a Veterans' Variety Company. He was married four times. He married Maggie Coleman in 1887; their two sons, Joe and David, later became a leading comic duo in

variety show Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical theatre, musical performances, sketch comedy, magic (illusion), magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is ...

s as well as radio and films, peaking in popularity between the 1920s and 1940s. Joe and Maggie divorced in 1897; he alleged her misconduct with three named men, while she countered with claims of cruelty and misconduct. Joe then remarried, to Jessie Grace ( Prosser), a

slack wire Slackwire (or slack wire) is an acrobatic circus act that involves the balancing skills of moving along a flexible, thin wire suspended in the air, connected to two anchor points. Slackwire is not to be confused with slacklining. Description a ...

performer known as "The Beautiful Jessica"; she died in 1908. His third marriage, to Irma Berenyi, again ended in divorce, in 1912. In 1923, he married Lily Rose Stone, who outlived him. Joe O'Gorman died in

Barnes Barnes may refer to: People * Barnes (name), a family name and a given name (includes lists of people with that name) Places United Kingdom *Barnes, London, England **Barnes railway station ** Barnes Bridge railway station ** Barnes Railway Bri ...

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

in 1937, aged 74, and was buried in

Putney Vale Cemetery Putney Vale Cemetery and Crematorium in southwest London is located in Putney Vale, surrounded by Putney Heath and Wimbledon Common and Richmond Park. It is located within of parkland. The cemetery was opened in 1891 and the crematorium in 1938. ...

. In 2014, the

Music Hall Guild The Music Hall Guild of Great Britain and America and the Theatre and Film Guild of Great Britain and America is a registered theatre charity and non-profit making theatre organisation based in London. The Guild's patrons include Brian Croucher ...

restored his grave."The final resting place of the famous music hall comedian Joe O'Gorman (1863 - 1937) has been restored", ''Music Hall Guild''
Retrieved 1 February 2021

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:O'Gorman, Joe 1863 births 1937 deaths Music hall performers Comedians from Dublin (city)